Yesterday, I listened to a three-hour podcast in one sitting. The genre caught me off guard—an actor, a comedian, and a rapper talking about everything under the sun, seamlessly slipping into freestyle rap.
The guys were immersed in pure creative flow, and it was genius.
And today, I was amused watching a similar approach to life from a six-month-old puppy. While his owner read a book, the dog joyfully and eagerly dug a deep hole, trying to reach the tree’s root.
His spontaneity was the embodiment of the raw energy of life.
When you lose yourself in an activity, something miraculous happens. It’s not just you who feels good in that moment—others around you also enjoy being near you. Why? You harmonize your own microcosm.
Philosopher, writer, and lecturer Alan Watts said it best:
"The existence, the physical universe is basically playful. There is no necessity for it whatsoever. It isn’t going anywhere. That is to say, it doesn’t have some destination that it ought to arrive at.
But that it is best understood by the analogy with music. Because music, as an art form is essentially playful. We say, “You play the piano” You don’t work the piano.
Why? Music differs from say, travel. When you travel you are trying to get somewhere.
In music, though, one doesn’t make the end of the composition. If that were so, the best conductors would be those who played fastest. And there would be composers who only wrote finales. People would go to a concert just to hear one crackling chord… Because that’s the end!
Same way with dancing. You don’t aim at a particular spot in the room because that’s where you will arrive. The whole point of the dancing is the dance.
We thought of life by analogy, with a journey, with a pilgrimage, which had a serious purpose at the end; and the thing was to get to that end, success or maybe heaven after you’re dead.
But we missed the point the whole way along. It was a musical thing and you were supposed to sing or to dance while the music was being played."
Sincerely yours,
-Alexander
About me:
As a business therapist, I help tech founders quickly solve dilemmas at the intersection of business and personality, and boost company value as a result.
How can I help you?
If you've long been trying to understand what is limiting you and/or your business and how to finally give important changes a push, then The Catalyst Session is designed specifically for you. Book it here.